poisonous geckos?

gandjwhite

New member
I was told that the turnip-tail gecko was poisonous or venemous...

As that at all true? Are there any geckos that are poisonous or venemous? Can you give me a sure answer because I don't want to touch this thing if you're wrong.

Thanks,
 

Protean

New member
Geckos have not been proven to be venomous yet. However agamids, varanids and iguanids have been proven to be venomous. They do have poor delivery mechanisms though.

http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn8331

www.venomdoc.com, click publications and you can find the paper there. I believe it is the third one down.

Fry BG, Vidal N, Norman JA, Vonk FJ, Scheib H, Ramjan R, Kuruppu S, Fung K, Hedges SB, Richardson MK, Hodgson WC, Ignjatovic V, Summerhayes R and Kochva E (2005) “Early evolution of the venom system in lizards and snakes.” Nature doi:10.1038/nature04328 (onliine 17 November 2005).

Cheers
Jason P
 

penceton

New member
Haha, i thought it was a mis-spelling and glad it wasn't!! Since i'm interested in bearded dragons and didn't want them to be poisonous! :) Thanks for the clarification! :)
 

happi_person

New member
Lol I never like to have wrong spelling I always check my spelling, yeah I meant Mexican beaded lizard lol. Although scientists think that could me more dangerous lizards but those two are the only one confirmed
 
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Palex134

New member
"Amongst extant reptiles only two lineages are known to have evolved venom delivery systems, the advanced snakes and helodermatid lizards (Gila Monster and Beaded Lizard)1. Evolution of the venom system is thought to underlie the impressive radiation of the advanced snakes (2,500 out of 3000 snake species)2,3,4,5. In contrast, the lizard venom system is thought to be restricted to just two species, and to have evolved independently from the snake venom system1. Here we report the presence of venom toxins in two additional lizard lineages (Monitor Lizards and Iguania) and show that all lineages possessing toxin secreting oral glands form a clade, demonstrating a single early origin of the venom systems in lizards and snakes."


Fry BG, Vidal N, Norman JA, Vonk FJ, Scheib H, Ramjan R, Kuruppu S, Fung K, Hedges SB, Richardson MK, Hodgson WC, Ignjatovic V, Summerhayes R and Kochva E (2005) “Early evolution of the venom system in lizards and snakes.” Nature doi:10.1038/nature04328 (onliine 17 November 2005).

Heloderma species aren't the only venomous lizards. Even wikipedia knows!

In late 2005, University of Melbourne researchers discovered that Komodo Dragons (Varanus komodoensis), Perenties (V. giganteus), Monitor lizards, Iguanians such as Pogona barbata may also be somewhat venomous. Previously, it had been thought that bites inflicted by these lizards were simply prone to infection because of bacteria in the lizards' mouths, but these researchers have shown that the immediate effects (at least in the Komodo Dragon, Spotted Tree Monitor, and the Lace Monitor) are caused by mild envenomation.[1]

Mexican Beaded Lizard - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

so as for the bearded dragons, looks like another Pogona species could have slight venom.
 

Animal34343

New member
Yeah, everything I ever read or saw about Komodo Dragons said it was bacteria. That is very interesting information though. Thank you for that.
 

happi_person

New member
yes but komodo dragons and perenties don't actually produce venom it's just the bacteria that sorta gives the same effect as venom..
 

Riverside Reptiles

Administrator (HMFIC)
Don't forget about the Vampire Gecko, very poisoness and deadly...latin name is Biteya makeyableeda...

A really scary gecko.



Here ya go Ken...a VERY rare pic of one in captivity:



vampiregeckolg9.jpg
 

Marty

Geckos Unlimited
Staff member
I'm new to geckos, but I do have one that's highly venomous. Biteyass atrox atrox commonly known as the western diamondback gecko. Not as rare as the Vampire, but still pretty cool.

 
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